Pipe-coupling.



W. A. JOHNSTON.

PIPE COUPLING. APPLICATION FILED ARR.24. 1.91s.

Patented Feb. 20, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

2 SHEETS SHEET 2.

sans

onion.

WILLIAM A. JOHNSTON, or AURORA, ILLINoIs, assieivon or ONE-HALF T0WILLIAM QUEENAN, or AURORA, ILLINOIS.

PIPE-COUPLING.

Specification of Letters Patent. .Pgrtentefl Fuel). 2@, 1917.

Application filed Apri124,1916. Serial No. eases.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, WILLIAM A. J OHN- STON, acitizen of the United States, residing at Aurora, in the county of Kaneand State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Pipe-Couplings, of which the following is aspeeification, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention is a pipe coupling which is more particularly adapted fora steam line, though it may be used for air.

In the usual type of coupling as now employed, upon trains is one whichmay be readily disconnected through sources which may be accidental.Thus the common form of coupling is usually put together by swivelingaction which means that the fluid in passing through, passes throughpassages which are substantially S-shape in form. ThisS-shape passageproduces a choking action.

To overcome the objections to existing devices, this invention aims toprovide a fluidtight coupling. One object of the invention is to providea coupling through which the fluid will pass in a substantiallystraightline, eliminating any choking action and eddy currents in the fluid byforming an expansion chamber intermediate the ends of a member of thecoupling. 1

liknother object is to provide a coupling that may be effectuallyattached to, the hose pipe.

This invention further aims to provide a coupling that may be readilycoupled and uncoupled in a minimum length of time.

The purpose of the invention is to provide a coupling which willeliminate personal injury when the members of the coupling are beingmated or attached together and yet be efiicient.

A further purpose is to provide a coupling having locking means to holdthe members of the coupling in their-correct operative position, thelocking means being attached to each member in an effective and surecoupling that will be mechanically strong and effective and of fewparts, to reduce the cost of replacement of worn material.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a coupling havinginterlocking means positioned in a diflerent plane from that of thelocking means.

A still further aim of the invention is to provide a removable bushingfor the port opening that may be readily and easily replaced when worn.

The invention broadly stated comprises a plurality of mating membersprovided with the usual hose pipe threaded connections through passagesin the members disposed in a substantially straight line on thelongitudinal axis of said members, port openings provided with removablebushings, interlocking members integral with and projecting from thebody portions of amating member, pivotally mounted locking memberssecured to the'sides of the body portions of the mating members, guidingele ments for the locking members, and means to retain the lockingmembers in their operative position and thereby maintain the portopenings in alinement and in operative engagement for eliminating theleakage of fluid between the port openings, said mating members beingprovided with a plurality of substantially flat exterior surfaces onwhich are disposed the locking members, the cooperation therebetweentending to prevent torsional or twisting movement of the membersrelative to each other, the cooperation between the lockingand'interlocking means with the mating members providing a method bywhich the mating members are held upon three sides against the movementsoperating to separate them.

.One practical form of the invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the mating members in their operativeposition;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the mating members in operative position; i

Fig. 3 a side elevation of one of the mating members showing the lockingmember and a stop lug therefor;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view through one of V the mating memb'ers, showingthe recessed portion to cooperate with the interlocking meansionthfeline A A of Fig. 2; V

V Fig. 5 is'a jsectionaliview showing one or" '5 theinterlocking memberson the line lei- A iofl ig 2; V i V Fig. 6 is az'sectional view'on theline BB ofFig. 4:; 1 i" mating members ';'l-

-Figf8'is' atbottoin.,plairview of one of i V the mating 'membersshowing thelocking member, the' interlocking member and thestop'lu'gsgkf Figrfilflirsa side elevation of the screw 'Q'Figgllislasectional view o'lthe bushing sho wi'ng the manner of its:retention' in the mating memberr In this view-there is shown a locliingmemj ber12 pivotally v mounted at;13.. This lock- 30 withanenl'argedportion. At-the outer or -,Wingbo1 f l,5- '-1 "Elie;wing bolt ffi hasintcrmediateof the 'ing. member "12 to'hold'th-e wing lo'olt 15in V the.bolt'may'berotated within certain limits 7 f times.

her-@ 12 is provided with arecess F. In one formed; a slot -which'communicates with ;the recess;throughout its length." g'lhe lnner tiall"*flatefrom endktoyend V 1'nean for nijemher is shown as being aheirago'nallyzflieaded 'blolti hich }is screwed relative;

Jami-es o o vith the recess F in the lockingjmember and alsov with theoffset 'eeess Gfwh ich 'cemrnuni;

' ,Fig. 7 is. a top-plan view of jone'of the" inean's inr the locking.member to more fully :FigflO isa-side'elevation of one of the l 'l he'two mating members D and E are V gage with a threaded socket 27.shownin theiropentive positioninFig. 1.

Iingniemberis provided-at its; forward end e v V V :24 of the'bushing22. i free end ofthismember 12 there is n ovided held securely in alldirections.

threaded aperture 14 and to cooperate with this 'threadedf portion thereis provided 7 a" 7 threaded portioma neck or recess '16 which" j -is.afd apted"to eooperate with a 'removabl'ef pin 17. -This pin 17ismounted in a suitable manner-gin theenlarged portion of thellock- I 1Q"anffoperative "position with" the V threaded "Qaperture 14h, Byjhavingthis neck portion,

I and prevent its accidentalwithdrawal at'all' enlarged portion o f thelocking mom- 'ofjthe'walls of this recessed portion-there is -faoe ofthis locking member 12- is. substannto theiwa'lliof onelof thematingmembers. 1 Oppositelyepositioned to and in the same is -of'the" pivotinemberf13' is an i 18. This';luglisj 'preferablyformed as; n, lfitegralpart-'- of 'thefmatinganember and? Y twa rdly' sufliciently tog-engage rcates with the recess F- The forward wall has apro ect1ngr1b 19 toengage with the recess G. hen the locking member 12 is swung over thelug 18, the threaded bolt 15 is screwed home and the point or free end vengages with the lug 18. This prevents longitudinal movement withrespect to the lock- ;ing members and therefrom the mating members. I

- Each of the members D and E is provided at one end with a port 20which communicates with an. inwardly extending recess 21. This recessispreferably tapered from front to rear, as shown in Fig. 5. Within thisrecessthere is positioned a preferably rcmovable bushing 22. Thisbushing is retained at-its inner or smaller end by means of'the collaror shoulder 23 and which is preferably integral with the body portion ofthe mating member. This bushing 22 is provided with a grooved portion orrecess ll.

The groove 24 coiiperates with a stem 2:) which is threaded preferablynear one end, which end also carries a wing 26, by which the threadedportion may be adapted to en- The stem portion25 passes through one wallof the recess 21. and projects or has a portion in- 'te mediate of itslength disposed in the recess 21 to" engage with the recess portion Thusthe bushing 1s 1 At the, other end of the member ID are The thre'ads 28are preferably out upon the interior of the body of the member and are"disposed .at such an angle as will. be most convenient for connectionto the hose pipe.

Theaxial line of this threaded end 1s approximately at an angle offorty-five degrees to the longitudinal axis of the bodyportion' of themember. .Vithin the body portion of the member there is provided achamber or cavity which is preferably somewhat larger in cross sectionthan the free passage leading to the port. This chamber H may constitutea practical form of pansionchamber to compensate for differentvelocities of'fluid through the ports when the two mating members arebrought into operative relation. The p votal The; sides upon which aredisposed the locklng member 12 and the lug 18 are substantiallyfiat andparallel to each other and wlien'the two mating members are brought ntoabutting engagement; this allows the inner side "or face of the lockingmember 12 to form'good bearing surfaces and thus reduce the tendency,which torsional and twlsting movements have to disengage them j frotheir locking position. Itmight be Well to state here that the wingportion 26 of the stem 25 may serve as a stop to limit the downwardmovement of the locking member 12 and to limit movement in the oppositedirection, there is provided another step 29 which is shown as beingrectangular in form, though its shape is immaterial. This stop 29prevents the backward movement of the locking member 12 when thecoupling is being disengaged and thereby prevents injury to the hands ofthe operator when disengaging.

Just below the port opening and to one side of the median linetherethrough, proj ects an interlocking member 40. The upper faces ofthis interlocking arm or member lie preferably in two separate parallelplanes and to connect these two surfaces into one surface, there isprovided a shoulder portion 30, the larger surface of this interlockingmember, arm or lug being angularly disposed with reference to the faceof the port opening and of the mating member ID. The smaller surface,which will be designated by 32 is disposed also at substantially thesame angle as is formed by the larger surface 31. The lug 40 has adepending portion 33 which projects a short distance downward and whoseouter surface is contiguous with the larger surface 31 of the lug.

The under surface 34 of the lug 40 is substantially flat and at rightangles to the face of the port opening. The depending portion or hook 33has its outer face substantially in a vertical plane, and the oppositewall 35 is preferably disposed angularly with reference to a planeparallel to the front wall.

Adjacent the lug or locking member 40 and the lower depending portion ofthe mating member, there is provided a recess I. Just within the recessand at the upper portion thereof, there is provided a shoulder 37. Thisshoulder 37- cooperates with the shoulder portion 30 of the lug 40. Thetop wall of tais recessed portion is angularly disposed to correspondwith the angle formed by the surface 32. The top wall of the recesswhich extends downwardly from the shoulder 37 is inclined in a suitablemanner and terminates at the juncture of the vertical back wall in acurve of sufficient radius to enable the depending portion or hook 33 topass freely therein.

The vertical back wall of this recess is continuous downwardly,terminating and forming one side of a substantially rectangular opening38 into which the hook or depending portion 33 passes. Across the lowerportion of the recess 1, there is disposed at web 39 whose inner edge isseparated from the back wall. The hook or depending portion 33 when thetwo mating members are assembled passes therein and hooks around thissurface.

interlocking provides fora slight play between the abutting faces of thebushing.

To complete the operation and effect an 1 air tight joint, the lockingmembers 12 are swungover into engagement with their corresponding lugs,the wing bolts carried by the locking members screwed home, thus forcingthe two exterior faces of the bushing in the port openings into amechanical engagement and effectually preventing any leakage of fluid attheir juncture of abutment.

The bushings 22 which may be made of any material but are thought at thepresent time that they had better be made of some substance which ismore yieldable than the material from .which the mating members aremade.

Thus when the two surfaces are brought into abutting engagement and thewing bolts are tightened, these two surfaces are made to conform'to eachother and the pressure exerted upon the faces is transmitted in adownward direction to the collar or shoulder 23, which communicates withthe chamber H in the body of the mating member.

Thus it will be seen that in order to interlock these members D and Ewith each other, the projection upon the interlocking lugs must passinwardly to engage with the web formed in the lower portion of each ofthe body members.

To disengage the two mating members from each other, as when uncouplingthe train pipe, the wing bolts are unloosened, swung over until theyrest against the stop lug 29, which prevents the locking member 12 fromstriking the handor hands of the person uncoupling. After these lockinglevers have been turned downward, against the stop lug, the coupling isslightly lifted to take off the strain caused by its weight, the twoparts are grasped in such a fashion that the two mating members will beseparated at their upper portions. This motion of separating is of asimilar type to that of separating hinged objects. As for practicalpurposes, the interlocking means serve as a hinge until the parts aresufficiently separated to withdraw the lugs from their respectiverecesses.

' While this coupling is more particularly .fa'dapteda for use'on'jsteam'lines, it is "also adaptedrrforj use 'With the cair brakesystem 1 for interchangeability of the'couplings. As 5'}:the'onecoupling will answer for the two servie'es,fit'will not benece'ssary fora raillroadto carryibut one style. V

struetion may be ;resorted to without departlLzA pipefcoiqlingcomprisingmating inembersjhai ngjport openings, each offs'aid iprojecting'lug provided with an engagingsurfaee"including-a.rib'extending at right angles. thereto,.jahorizontally pivotally mounted locking 1 a rm having. recesses formedtherein near the outer end,'fa removably;secured bolt positioned inthe'en'd of F the fni'ytheend ofthe bolt being formed to fr-ietionallyengage with the surface of tactingwith ieontiguous sides, of each of Vthe; membersfiwhichlie'in the same plane, "and"interlocking 'membersconsisting of "a g V projecting hooke'dclug adjacent a recess formedbelow theport'openingso that when said lugs-are positioned in theirrespective themembers when coupling and uncou- "p lmg ,extendingflug-Ipro'videdrrwith, an engaging o surface including ribextending atxrightangles" 'theret'o, aa horizontally pivotally mounted "locking armfhavingv recesses to; reeeive j the lug and 'rib of the secondinlthefendof the arm, the end of the bolt without practically any changewhich makes -Min'orchanges 1in" form and details of coning from the"spiritof the inventionor'fronr f'thedug, said arm wl'i'en' sopositioned, con-' 7 V coeperating recesses, longitudinal movementwofthe-rmating members 1s restr cted, and

' also' to. fo'm a hinged connection between I :2.1'Apipe i couplingcomprising mating members'liaving port open ngs, each ofsaid' -membersbeing provided W1tl1 f a laterally 'formedtherein'near the outer endthereof member, aremovably secured bolt secured being formed tofrictionally engage with the surface of the lug, said arm when soposilllCllGCtCOlllZttCtlng with contlguous sides of each of the membersplane.

3. A p-1pe'couplmg comprising mating which lie in the same membershaving port openings, each of said members being provided with alaterally pro ectmg lug provided with an engaging surface and lncludmg arib extending at right angles thereto, a horizontally pivotally mountedlocking arm having recesses formed therein near the outer end to receivethe lug g r V and rib of the second member, a bolt threadmembers xbeingiprovided with fa laterally 7 ed through the outer end portion of the arma retaining member disposed through the varm and positioned within thereduced portion of the bolt whereby the bolt is held against removal andis afforded a. limited movement in either direction.

t. A pipe coupling comprising mating members having port openings, eachof said members being provided with a laterally extending lug providedwith an engaging surface including a rib extending at right anglesthereto, a horizontally pivotally mounted locking arm having recessesmounted therein near the outer end thereof to receive the lug and rib ofthe second member, a removably secured bolt secured in the end of thearm, the end of the bolt being formed to frictionally engage with thesurface of the lug, said arm when so positioned contacting withcontiguous sides of each of the members which lie in the same plane, andmeans for limiting the pivotal movement of-the locking arm in eitherdirection.

In testimony whereof I hereunto allix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses.

WILLIAM. A. JOHNSTON.

'7 itnesses JOHN S. MERCER, FRED L. THATCIIER.

5 Gopies "ofith is iiatentmaybe obtained for'fiveeents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents,

i i. 7 i WashingtomDCfi,

